


If I Could Tell Her

by redhoodiehearts (Heroichemmo)



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: Afterlife, Chats between spirits, Implied Nico di Angelo/Will Solace, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-03
Updated: 2017-05-03
Packaged: 2018-10-27 05:33:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10802778
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Heroichemmo/pseuds/redhoodiehearts
Summary: For reasons Will Solace couldn't seem to understand, he was standing face-to-face with his boyfriend's sister -- the dead one, not the one he knew. He doesn't know why or how it's possible, but they spend a little time talking about the things he'd heard about her and the way Nico was before her passing.(Basically I was listening to DEH's If I Could Tell Her and kept picturing Will and Bianca watching Nico from the other side and chatting about their favorite Death Boy)((I promise there's a happy ending this time))





	If I Could Tell Her

**Author's Note:**

> Yes I know Bianca chose rebirth before Nico and Will became a thing, but I love Bianca and wish she was around to interact with all of the people in Nico's life instead of being, y'know, dead.
> 
> Also, Will and Nico are in their early 20s in this, and Bianca is physically 14, though technically it doesn't matter because she's dead (and I'm bitter over her death still).

"Well, this is a surprise."

The voice came as a shock to a nervous and somewhat scared Will Solace. One second he'd been running through a playground in Texas outside, entertaining some of the young patients at the hospital he volunteered at, and now he was standing in a plain room with black walls on 3 sides, a full-length window along the last. He felt like he'd been staring through the window forever, though he knew he'd been there a total of fifteen seconds. When he turned, he was met with a girl who seemed to only be about 14 years old in an outfit he recognized from the Hunters of Artemis, with dark, braided hair and a splash of freckles that made him reach up and touch his own. While he'd never met her before, a small observation made it clear to him just who she was.

"Bianca?" Will hesitated with his words. If he was right, then there was something  _seriously_ wrong.

"And Will, I'd presume?" She smiled, standing from her cross-legged position. He took an unsteady step back in response. Yeah, something was wrong here. He simply looked at her for a moment, still processing it; if he was seeing her --  _actually_ seeing her, not as a spirit like Nico had talked about, with an actual body (or what looked like one anyways) then he had to be... No, it wasn't possible. He was just dreaming or something.

"Calm down, please!" She held her arms up in a mock surrender at the bewildered look upon his face. "Don't act like you've never seen a dead person before; you  _are_ dating my little brother, aren't you?"

"Not like this!" Will sputtered out, the reality hitting him like a rock. "U-Usually it's just skeletons! Which I still don't understand how they can move without any muscles, but that's a whole  _other_ conversation -- how is this possible?!"

"Well, in my time being here, either you're dying and this is your 'limbo'," she shrugged, as if she wasn't one hundred percent sure, "or you've already died and an elevator is going to appear over there in a few minutes." The statement resonated within the blond, one hand moving to scratch at his head. There was no way in Hades he could be  _dead_ , of all things. Besides, he couldn't die, he had too many things left to do; he still needed to finish unpacking the last boxes in his and Nico's apartment, to finish school and get a good job, settle down, maybe even eventually open his own family practice. But then, if he wasn't, then what other explanation was there?

They both focused on their surroundings as it changed, Will completely turning away from Bianca as it dawned on him what they were being shown. A few steps forward and he was standing in the doorway of the office in his and Nico’s apartment. He could hear Bianca walking as well, a small chuckled coming from her. He looked over at her small frame, her eyes wide and a smile stretched across her features.

“Is that really him?” She asked, voice barely audible. He looked back at the view in front of them, wanting nothing more than to be cuddled into the raven-haired boy’s side. From their spot, it was easy to see Nico, dressed in a pair of pajama pants and a hoodie, tapping away at a keyboard at a desk as he completed more work.

“Yep.” He tried to not sound completely broken; if he was dead, who was going to help Nico through the bad days? All their other friends were in New York and California; the closest was Leo, who was usually in Houston but it was always a guessing game as to if he was even home or not.

“He looks happy,” One of her hands moved to wipe at her eyes. “it’s a nice change from the last time I saw him.”

Will was silent for a moment before walking forward again, a hand resting on the back of the chair his boyfriend was sitting in. After a few seconds, he looked back at her. “He thought you were awesome.”

“My brother thought I was awesome?” Her lips danced with a smile, arms crossing as she joined his side.

“Definitely. He was always talking about you, you know.”

“…Really?” He could hear the shakiness in her voice as she questioned him; it had to be as hard for her to see him as it was for him, if not harder.

“Yeah. He loves to tell me stories of the things you two would do together, how you were always finding him Mythomagic cards and figurines. He said your smile was something that could brighten up his day, but you never really knew how much it meant to him when he caused it. Or how you’d scribble little drawings whenever you got bored. He does it too, you know.” He couldn’t help but laugh a little bit. Looking at her, it was clear she wanted to hear more – her eyes were trained on Nico, but her demeanor screamed ‘I want to know everything.’

“Did he tell you that I always drew stars while he’s always doodling suns?” Bianca glanced at him briefly before moving to get an even better look at him from the side.

“I knew about the suns, but not the stars. Kind of fitting.”

“We were always together, but he always did outshine me.”

“There were a lot of things he wanted to tell you, Bianca. But he kept them all wrapped up because he thought he’d have more time to talk to you, to tell you what he wanted to say. Every once in a while, especially closer to the anniversary of your death, he’ll look at me and say, ‘I wish I could tell her that she was everything to me, but we’re worlds apart and I missed my chance.’ He really misses you.”

He could see the tears on her face now, eyes trained on Nico's profile. Even if this was just a dream and he _wasn’t_ dead, there was no doubt that this was actually Bianca (or her spirit, same thing). After a minute or so, she spoke again. “What else did he tell you?”

At his hesitation, she turned and looked at him. “I mean, if there’s anything else. I know it’s been a while, he probably has recovered, huh?”

“No, no! He talks about you all the time, there’s just… So much. One of his favorite stories was the little adventure you both had with hair dye when you were in D.C. and turned a sink purple. The color wasn’t really visible in your hair unless you were in the sun, but he thought it looked cool.”

“He loved having a matching streak with me.” She shook her head with a teary grin. “Every time we were in the sunshine he was all grins, pulling on his hair to see it and show me that we matched even more.”

“And the time he found you dancing in your room and without question just pulled him in to join you.”

“Oh yeah! He was so clumsy if I didn’t have a hand on him he would have fallen so many times.”

“He wanted to ask how you could do that without caring what others thought.”

She laughed again, a hand hesitating over Nico’s hair before resting it here for a moment. Nico hardly seemed phased, though he did wave a hand over his head as if shooing away a fly as she moved her hand to her pocket. “I had the best brother; he was the only one I cared about so I didn’t let the other people get to me.”

Will moved, leaning against the desk with arms crossed as he watched Nico work. It was a view he always had and often saw, but this time he knew that he wouldn’t get a response if he spoke. There would be no ‘Stop bothering me, Solace, I’m trying to work,’ or ‘Just a minute,’ if Will were to try and say something to him, and it hurt more than he thought it would. “The same goes for him, you know. Before Hazel, he was secluded because you were gone. And he stayed like that for a while; lemme tell you, convincing him to stay at Camp Half-Blood was a bigger battle than the one with Octavian.”

She laughed again, peering over Nico’s shoulder at the screen. “What’s he doing?”

“Translation, probably. He does a lot of Italian to English, or vice versa for companies in need of international business.” He grinned, watching as his eyes moved from the document he was typing in and the one open next to it.

“And what’s with the two of you?”

The question took Will off guard, his eyes moving from a loving gaze on Nico to a questioning one to his sister. Her face was stern, arms crossed as she stood behind her brother in a protective stance. “I—what?”

“I know you’re with my brother romantically; what’re your plans?”

“You mean if I’m not dead?” He deadpanned, a grin growing on his features. “Well, eventually we’ll get married if that’s what he wants, but there’s no rush at the moment; I’m focused on becoming a doctor and he’s got his job and is back and forth between here and New Rome at least once a month to see Reyna and Hazel. We’re happy just being together like this, and he knows I’m ready whenever he is.”

She studied his features for a moment before nodding. “Good. Because if you hurt him, William Solace, I swear to the Gods--”

“—I’ll be cursed for a million years, ten thousand arrows to the back, run over by a horse and mauled by a bear, drowned in the River Styx… I’ve gotten plenty of threats from all of his closest friends; I promise I’m not ever going to hurt him.”

With a small ‘hmph’ Bianca moved her focus again to Nico’s face, adjusting herself to the other side of the desk. They stayed like that for who knows how long, just watching Nico work with love in their eyes. Distantly, a phone was ringing, but Nico ignored it the first time. The second, however, he groaned and pushed away from the desk, walking into another room. Will and Bianca followed, watching as he answered.

“Hello?” He sounded tired; he’d probably slept until an hour ago despite Will trying to get him up before he’d left that morning. “That’s me, can I help you?” They watched as his features changed from tired and annoyed to one of panic, Will instantly straightening up in worry. “I’m on my way. I’ll be there in three minutes.” They watched as Nico hastily hung up and ran out of the room, Italian curses flying from his lips as he grabbed various items from around them before running through the front door. He and Bianca shared a look, and before he could even ask, she was speaking.

“If I’m not mistaken, that was a call from the hospital telling him that you were there and in critical condition.”

“Shit… Shit, I need to get back.” He looked around them, doing a complete three sixty before looking at her again. “How do I get back?”

“Usually you have to just wait. No elevator’s appeared so I’d assume you’re gonna be fine.”

“How long do I wait? I can’t let Nico worry, he tends to lose control when his emotions run wild… I don’t want him to do something that could hurt him.”

She shrugged, taking a seat on the bed in their room. “Depends. What did you do, Solace?”

The way she said his name reminded him so much of her brother, causing him to wrap his arms around himself; if he couldn’t get back to himself before too long, it wouldn’t be good; someone needed to keep Nico calm and everyone was too far for that. Maybe he’d have enough hindsight to call Percy or Jason on his way to the hospital before anything became too bad. “That’s the thing, I don’t know… I was playing with some of the younger patents, that’s all I remember.”

“Well, just give it a little time. I’m sure you’ll be pulled back any time now.” She looked around them, at the pictures on the walls in their room, at the ones of their friends with a grin. “I should go. I’m… I’m going to be reborn, Will, so I won’t be able to see Nico anymore, even fleetingly. Will you tell him I love him? And to not worry, I’ll always be in his heart. Please. And make sure he’s happy; I never want him to be as sad as he was after I left, so you’d better pull through, Sunshine.”

He grinned, not questioning her and instead giving her a small salute. “Will do. And Bianca?”

She looked up at him after saluting back, head cocked to the side.

“It was nice to finally meet you.”

He watched as she grinned again, her image going in and out of focus like trying on glasses with the wrong prescription. “Nice to meet you as well, Will. I’m glad you’re there for my brother.”

There was no sure-fire way of knowing just how long he was in the room, looking at all the things that were uniquely Nico, before his vision started going blurry again, the images in front of him fading. The next thing he saw was a bright light and felt a pressure on his arm. Looking down, he was met with the sleeping face of his boyfriend, a small tear forming as he used his free hand to wipe at his bangs. He watched as his eyes flickered open and sat up, taking a second to adjust and meet Will’s. As soon as it registered, his face became a fake sort of angry, glaring at him.

“You’re awake, finally! Gods, Will, do you know how worried I was?! What kind of idiot runs out in front of a car?!”

He laughed, swiping at his face to rid it of tears as everything came rushing back. “I was making sure they didn’t hit one of the kids. I could survive it, they couldn’t.”

“Barely survived. I walked in here and could sense just how close to gone you were; wouldn’t be surprised if there were people down there that saw you coming in.” Nico rolled his eyes, grip on Will’s hand tightening. “I thought you were _gone_ , Will.”

“I think there’s someone ‘down there’ that would’ve never let me hear the end of it if I did, darling. She would _not_ have been happy with me after I promised to stay with you.”


End file.
